The Monster Within
by BaOgden
Summary: After Gwen has an incident with an alien she goes through some changes.. I DO NOT OWN TORCHWOOD.
1. Chapter 1

Gwen was running, her heart pounding so fast she could feel it in her throat. Her hand was bleeding, a deep cut trailing from the bottom of her thumb halfway up her index finger. However, she had other things on her mind. She needed to catch him. The alien creature had sharp claws up to 6 centimetres long, a dark green face with scarlet eyes and purple bumps all over it.

'Jack, I'm losing it', Gwen huffed, almost out of breath.

'Where are you?' Jack asked her, talking through the headsets that they all had.

'Just coming round the corner of the huge set of garages.' Gwen began slowing down. The thing was almost out of sight.

'I've got it', Owen said. They then heard a noise that could only be explained as Owen diving on the creature and hitting the floor.

'We're coming', Jack replied.

Gwen was the first one to reach Owen. He was struggling to hold it down. 'Those claws are big', Gwen said, admiring the huge, knife-like things on the end of its hand. It then threw Owen off of itself, and he hurtled through the air, hitting the floor hard. The thing then jumped up, taking a swipe at Gwen and splitting the leather of her jacket. She was left with another deep gash, this time on her upper arm. At that point Jack and Tosh appeared. 'He's getting away _again_' Jack shouted, running at the alien creature and tackling it to the floor.

'Owen, are you okay?' Gwen asked, remembering that he had hit the ground quite hard.

'If I get a bloody bruise..' he replied, getting up slowly.

'Owen, I need the needle!', Jack shouted, struggling to hold the thing down. Owen handed him the needle, and Jack injected it into the creature. The thrashing decreased slowly, and then it lay there, unconscious underneath Jack.

'There we go. Owen will you give me a hand?' he asked, lifting the creature's legs up. Ianto then pulled up in the car.

'He's not a looker, is he?' Ianto commented as he helped Jack lift the creature into the boot of the car.

'I've seen better', Jack replied, pushing the thing's legs into the boot securely. Gwen and Owen had already gotten into the car. Ianto and Jack were chatting as the got into the front of the car when Owen interrupted them, sounding concerned.

'Uhh.. Jack?'

'What?'

'It's Gwen..' Owen replied. Jack turned round and saw that Gwen was sat in the back, extremely pale, covered in purple spots.


	2. Chapter 2

As they got back to the Hub, Owen was steadying Gwen and walking her to the autopsy bay while Jack and Ianto carried in the alien creature and put it in the cells.

'I haven't seen anything like this, before..' Tosh said curiously, taking a closer look at Gwen.

'_What?'_ Gwen asked, annoyed.

'I think it's best if you don't look..' Owen told her.

'Let me see!' Gwen said impatiently. Owen went to get a mirror, and brought it back a few seconds later. He then held it up to Gwen's face, for her to look at.

'Oh my GOD', she said, appalled. Everyone held the same expression of sympathy and disgust.

'Gwen, it's really not that bad', Owen began to reassure her.

'I look like bloody Mr Blobby!' Gwen shouted.

'Yeah, except Mr Blobby is purple with yellow spots..' Ianto said, then retreating to the kitchen after the look he'd received from Gwen. _If looks could kill._

'Owen, you run some tests on Gwen. I'm going to go and take a second look at our creature', Jack said, walking away. Owen nodded, and began getting his equipment out.


	3. Chapter 3

'You better be able to cure me, Owen. I can't stay like this...I look hideous', Gwen said, staring at herself.

'No you don't,' he reassured her. She gave him a look as if to say _seriously?_

'This might sting...' Owen said as he then inserted a needle into her upper forearm. Jack returned a few minutes later.

'Do you know anything?' Gwen asked him desperately.

'Tosh is working on it.. It seems pretty clear that the creature did that to you when it scratched you', Jack replied. 'Its DNA got into your system.' Gwen sighed. Owen then began dressing Gwen's wounds on her hand and upper arm that the creature had given her. Ianto then returned into the room carrying a couple of cups of coffee. He handed one to Jack and one to Tosh.

'Where's my coffee?' Gwen asked, sounding hurt.

'Sorry, Doctor's orders. You can't have any caffeine when you're under observation and having tests run', Ianto replied. Gwen signed and looked at Owen, her eyes narrow. Owen looked back at her slightly apologetically. But not as apologetically as she'd have liked.

About 5 minutes later, Tosh joined them all down in the autopsy bay with news. 'Okay, there is one cure. But it requires a lot of substances..'

'Am I gonna' like the sound of this?' Gwen asked.

'What are they?' Jack asked her.

'One of them is the DNA of the creature. A _Subeer _I believe it's called. I've made a list on my computer..' Tosh told them all.

'Show me', Jack replied. Tosh took him to her computer where he read the list of ingredients for Gwen's antidote.

'Wow..' Gwen said suddenly.

'What?' Owen asked.

'I'm having really bad pains..' she began. Owen looked panicked.

'Shit', he said.

'What's happening to me?' Gwen asked him bluntly, looking a mixture between angry and upset.

'Jack!' Owen shouted, rushing around with some alien tech that he was using on Gwen.

Jack ran down the steps. 'What's up?'

'It's Gwen.. I think she's turning', Owen told him.

'Ianto, Toshiko, you come with me. Owen you stay and keep an eye on Gwen. Let us know if there's any changes' Jack announced.

'I said, _what's happening to me_?!' Gwen shouted, annoyed and panicked, tears in her eyes.

'If Jack, Ianto and Tosh don't get the ingredients in time, you'll turn into one of the aliens..' Owen told her, his voice quiet, giving Gwen time to take in this information.

The other three were on their way out. 'Hurry, Jack, yeah?' Owen shouted to him.


	4. Chapter 4

It felt like hours that Gwen was sat with Owen. Gwen wasn't talking; she was sat in silent panic, waiting for the others to return to save her life. A tear rolled down her cheek.

'They'll make it back in time, Gwen', Owen told her, putting his hand on her arm comfortingly. They both felt a spark between them as Owen touched Gwen. It made Owen jump slightly. Gwen picked up on it, and looked into his eyes. Owen looked away quickly. He then went to fiddle with some alien tech.

'How's my temperature?' Gwen asked to break the silence.

'Just under 48 degrees', Owen replied.

'That's bad, right?' Gwen asked him. 'I mean.. that can damage your brain.' Owen shook his head.

'Not with the technology we're using. You're fine. The only thing we need to worry about is the others getting back on time.'

Gwen nodded once, then began staring into space.

Half an hour later Jack, Ianto and Toshiko returned. 'Just in time' Owen said bluntly, getting a syringe ready.

'There's just _one _more thing we need', Jack said, rushing to the cells with Ianto.

'Oh God.. They better not be doing what I think they're doing..' Owen said. Toshiko smirked and shook her head.

'They're just getting the DNA of the alien. Help me start setting up the rest of the ingredients' Tosh told him.

'How long have I got left?' Gwen asked, sounding weak. 'And do I look like a monster, yet?'

'Not yet. How are your stomach pains holding up?' Tosh asked her, looking sympathetic.

'They're coming and going.'

Jack and Ianto returned from the cells with a test tube of a strange coloured liquid. '_What_ is that?' Gwen asked, disgusted.

'The DNA of the alien', Ianto replied, shrugging.

'It's _blue_', Gwen said, getting a closer look at it.

'This species has blue blood', Tosh said, helping Owen to add the blood to the syringe.

'Right', Owen said, flicking the syringe, 'ready Gwen?'

Gwen nodded. Owen injected Gwen with the strange coloured liquid. 'This feels weird', she commented.

'That should do the trick', Owen said, frowning with concentration.

'Have the spots gone?' Gwen asked, hopeful. Jack shook his head.

'Give it some time, Gwen.'

'I'm not going outside looking like this! I look like a bloody moron.'

Owen smirked.

'At least you're safe now. How do you feel?' Jack asked Gwen, looking concerned.

'I feel fine. Fancy some pizza, though', she replied, smiling.

That evening consisted of them having a laugh and eating pizza. Nobody could help laughing at Gwen's purple spots, and in the end even she began to find it funny. 'Pass some of that pepperoni, will you Ianto?' Gwen asked him.

'Is it me or is the pizza really good tonight?' Tosh asked with her mouth full of anchovy pizza.

'It does look bloody good', Owen said.

'Sorry, Owen', Tosh said apologetically. Owen just smiled.

'I think I've had my fair share of pizza over the years', he said.

'You've got one hell of an appetite for someone who had a fever of 48 degrees no more than 2 hours ago', Ianto said, looking at Gwen taking another huge bite of pizza.

'That's Torchwood technology for you', Owen replied.

'I bloody love Torchwood', Ianto said, smiling.


End file.
